Laguna Cejar and the Salt Lagoons
The Cejar complex is a group of brine lagoons on the northern edge of the Salar de Atacama, and it is the only place in this desert where getting into the water is the point. The brine is concentrated enough that you float on the surface without effort. There is one thing worth knowing before you book, and the tour names do not say it: the lagoon you swim in is usually not the one the tour is named after.
Cejar is now look-only
Laguna Cejar itself is protected for contemplation and bathing takes place at Laguna Piedra within the same complex. Tours continue to be sold under the Cejar name, because that is the name people search for. You will float. It will be in the next lagoon along, and that is not a bait and switch, it is conservation.
Why you float
Dissolved salt makes the brine far denser than sea water, so your body sits on it rather than in it. The effect is the same as the Dead Sea. Thirty minutes is about as long as anyone stays, because the water is cold.
The rules, and the reason for them
No sunscreen immediately before entering: it contaminates the water, and you are asked to apply it at least an hour beforehand. Showers afterwards are limited to roughly thirty seconds with no soap or shampoo. That is not officiousness. This is the driest desert on Earth and those showers are the only fresh water for miles.
The salt afterwards
It dries as a white crust and finds every cut you have. The brief rinse is what makes the drive back bearable. Bring a towel, dry clothes, and do not shave that morning.
Baltinache, the quieter alternative
The Lagunas Escondidas de Baltinache are a separate set of seven hidden lagoons further out, sold as their own half-day. Fewer people, longer drive, same floating.
Booking timing
The admission for the Cejar tours has to be paid twelve hours before departure, so a same-morning booking will not work. Book the day before.
Frequently asked questions
Can you swim in Laguna Cejar?
Not in Cejar itself, which is now protected for contemplation only. The floating happens at Laguna Piedra in the same complex, and tours are still sold under the Cejar name.
Why is sunscreen not allowed?
It contaminates the brine. Apply it at least an hour before you get in rather than at the water's edge.
How long are the showers?
About thirty seconds, with no soap. Fresh water here is scarce and that is the whole reason for the limit.
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